Cold Calling for Truck Dispatchers

Cold calling for truck dispatchers means phoning owner-operators and small fleets that run their own authority, finding the ones who want help finding loads, and booking calls with your dispatchers. Switchstack gives dispatch services a dedicated caller who works your list or FMCSA's public carrier data, checks each carrier's MC number, equipment and lanes, and calls carriers only, never shippers. Every call is made by a real person. Hire a Caller costs $1,499 to $2,399 a month per full-time caller, and We Call for You costs $2,199 to $3,099, set by the caller's country. There's no setup fee and no charge per carrier signed, and calls start in about 2 weeks.

Making the calls yourself for now? Our truck dispatcher cold calling script has the full script, an opener for new authorities and answers to "I find my own loads".

Most dispatch services sign carriers in three ways: referrals from carriers they already dispatch, trucking groups and contacts, and calling carriers directly. Referrals are the warmest, but you can't make more of them on demand. Calling is the one you can grow by adding hours.

The data is public. FMCSA's Company Census File lists carriers registered with FMCSA, with each one's USDOT number, phone numbers, the date it was added and its number of power units. That's enough to build a list of one- to ten-truck carriers in the regions and equipment types you dispatch.

The hard part is the hours. Signing carriers takes a lot of dials, and owner-operators are often driving when you call. Every hour your dispatchers spend on that is an hour they're not booking loads for the carriers you already have. A dedicated caller takes that work off them.

We agree on the carrier types with you before calls start. Most dispatch services start with these:

Every call opens by asking whether the driver is parked. If they're driving, your caller asks when they'll stop and calls back then.

Your caller books a call with your dispatcher only when the carrier is one you can help, and sends these notes with it:

Your caller doesn't book loads, negotiate with brokers or sign anyone up. Your dispatcher takes the call, explains your fee and sends your dispatch agreement.

Both give you one dedicated, full-time caller who works 40 hours a week on your carriers. The difference is who manages them:

• No setup fee and no charge per carrier signed
• Month to month, with 30 days' notice
• A free replacement in the first 30 days if your caller isn't a fit

Cold calling for truck dispatchers costs $1,499 to $2,399 a month per full-time caller with Hire a Caller, or $2,199 to $3,099 with We Call for You, set by the country your caller works from.

Launch offer: 20% off the first 2 months, so a caller starts from $1,199 a month. No code needed.

Your caller works US hours. If many of the carriers you call speak Spanish, a caller from Latin America can run the same script in Spanish:

• Philippines · Hire a Caller from $1,799 a month

  Languages: English and Filipino.

• India · Hire a Caller from $1,499 a month

  Languages: English and Hindi, plus regional languages.

• South Africa · Hire a Caller from $2,199 a month

  Languages: English, often as a first language.

• Latin America · Hire a Caller from $2,399 a month

  Languages: English and Spanish.

1. A 30-minute call. The equipment types and regions you dispatch, your fee, and the carriers you work best with.
2. We agree on the list and the goal. Which carriers to call, and what a carrier must have before your caller books them in.
3. You choose your caller. We test callers on role-play calls with owner-operators. You hear the recordings and approve one.
4. We set up the script with you, starting from our truck dispatcher script, with your fee and your answers to "I find my own loads" and "are you a broker?"
5. Calls start in about 2 weeks. Your caller books calls straight onto your dispatchers' calendars, with notes on each carrier.

Four rules shape how your caller works. This is general information, not legal advice.

• Drivers can't use a hand-held phone while driving a commercial vehicle under 49 CFR 392.82, so every call starts by asking whether the driver is parked.
• Your caller dials every call by hand. Under the TCPA, autodialed or prerecorded calls to mobile phones need prior express consent, and many owner-operators use a personal cell.
• Calls to businesses are exempt from the Do Not Call Registry rules, but a personal cell number may be on it, so we check numbers that may be personal. See cold calling laws in the US.
• Your caller calls carriers only and pitches your dispatch service, never a specific load. FMCSA's 2023 guidance on brokers and bona fide agents lists dealing directly with shippers, and offering a shipment to the open market of carriers, as signs that a dispatch service needs broker authority.

Also run a brokerage that sells to shippers? Our cold calling for logistics companies covers calling shippers for freight brokers, 3PLs and carriers.